The present invention relates to an apparatus for cooling food products for example in rail cars, containers, vessels, trucks, etc.
It is well known to cool food products with carbon dioxide. In known methods and apparatuses liquid carbon dioxide is supplied into the interior of a container and discharged through a plurality of nozzles so that the liquid carbon dioxide is chilled and forms snow which covers food products accommodated in the container. While the existing methods and apparatuses perform their intended functions in satisfactory manner, it is always desirable to reduce liquid carbon dioxide consumption and to increase efficiency of the method and the system so as to either produce the same amount of snow with lower liquid carbon dioxide consumption, or with the same energy supply produce more snow.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for cooling food products, which is a further improvement of the existing methods and apparatuses.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide such an apparatus which allow producing of cold by supplying liquid carbon dioxide from outside of a food container, in particular for example from outside terminals, into the food container which is not supplied with corresponding devices for producing carbon dioxide snow.
In keeping with these objects and with others which will become apparent hereinafter, one feature of the present invention resides, briefly stated in an apparatus for cool food products, which comprises means for supplying liquid carbon dioxide into the interior of the container and discharging liquid carbon dioxide in the interior so as to form carbon dioxide snow in the container with simultaneous generation of carbon dioxide vapors, and means for withdrawing the carbon dioxide vapors from the container and moving the withdrawn carbon dioxide vapors in the vicinity of the supplying means so that cold from the withdrawn carbon dioxide vapors is transmitted to liquid carbon dioxide supplied by the supplying means, the supplying means and the withdrawing means being located outside of the container.
In accordance with another feature an apparatus for cooling food products has a container for accommodating cooled products, means for supplying liquid carbon dioxide into the container, means for discharging liquid carbon dioxide in the container so as to produce carbon dioxide snow with simultaneous generation of carbon dioxide vapors, and means for moving carbon dioxide vapors in the vicinity of the supplying means so that cold of carbon dioxide is transferred to the supplied liquid carbon dioxide.
The energy consumption for producing of carbon dioxide snow to cool the products is reached and the quantity of the snow produced with the inventive solution is increased.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for cooling food products, which comprises a tubular pipe adapted to extend in an interior of the container so as to supply liquid carbon dioxide, and a plurality of nozzles arranged on the distributor pipe to discharge the liquid carbon dioxide from the distributor pipe, the nozzles being arranged so that jets of liquid carbon dioxide ejected by the nozzles extend substantially along a longitudinal of the distributor pipe and against one another to collide substantially between the nozzles.
It is a feature of the present invention to provide an apparatus for cooling food products in a container, which comprises means for supplying liquid carbon dioxide into a container, at least two nozzles connected with the supplying means and discharging liquid carbon dioxide in two jets directed toward one another so as to produce carbon dioxide snow, and means for adjusting the jets of the nozzles so as to provide a uniform distribution of carbon dioxide snow over a surface of the food products.
The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the present invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.